We are growing and growing and growing...

She is as long as celery. And moving all the time!

24 weeks marks the spot. Or line. That wierd line associated with pregnancy, called "linea nigra," is starting to surface down my belly. Fine, so there isn't a thing I can do about it.

As you may have heard, we have a winner for the "What is this flower?" game. Two people have now guessed correctly. 1. Beccah Birken and 2. Saundra Bedient. Beccah is my cousin (but will be an auntie to the baby) and Saundra is the chiropractor in my Team Women networking group. Congratulations to the two of you!

And no, we aren't quite ready to share the name so you will just have to keep on guessing!

We had a doctor's appointment last week. The results from the ultrasound came in and everything looks normal! My uterus is about 1-1/4" above my belly button which marks 23 weeks gestation. Looks like we are right on track! Unless our little one decides to come early, we are moving towards a late June b'day. The doctor did report that I gained too much weight this past month- 9 pounds! I should only have gained 4. Not something you tell a woman. Now I am going to agonize over everything I eat. Yah, yah, so what if I was underweight in the beginning (so really, I have just caught up), but 9 pounds! "Yah, yah, don't stress over it"- everyone says- "eat whatever you want." WELL, that is a whole other blog entry. The food restrictions for a pregnant woman is obscene! I CAN'T wait until I can do some real exercising. So other than eating too much crap, the check up went well. In 4 weeks I will do another round of bloodwork, this time to check for gestational diabetes.

I have been trying like crazy to find bedding and paint for the nursery. I give up. I am done. Too much stress. This is supposed to be the fun part of having a baby. But it isn't. Sorry everyone, no theme, nothing! If I am feeling motivated I will just slap some paint up and be done with it. (Can you tell I am tired today?)

We set up a couple of email addresses for the baby! If you would like to send her an email, you can do so at babygirlsmitty@gmail.com.

Ha! I bet you thought it would have her name in it. Come on, give us a little more credit! This email will forward to her real one!

I am having some problems with my Sacroiliac Joint, which is the joint within the pelvic girdle. I threw it out when I fell down some stairs last October- the further along I get in my pregnancy the more inflammed it becomes. Sleep is the biggest issue. I am at the point in my pregnancy where I can no longer sleep on my back; sleeping on my side compresses this joint. So a few nights ago I rigged a ton of pillows on the bed so that I can sleep partially sitting upright. Not the most comfortable position in the world but my SI joint no longer hurts throughout the night.

I still have had NO cravings. Sure, some things taste better than others, but no REAL cravings. I am a little dissappointed. I have been so wanting to "make" Ryan leave the house at 10pm to get me a taco or some ice cream- anything! But it hasn't happened. He is sooooo lucky. And no real aversions to food, either. Sometimes the smell of cooking salmon gets to me, but that has only happened a couple of times. Now that I think about it, I guess I have had an aversion. I am really sensitive towards sweet foods. Not the rich, dark chocolate kind, but the artifical-tasting foods like Yoplait and sorbet.

Other than that, we are moving along! A lot of people have been asking me about work- I am still working, and plan to do so until I can no longer manage it. So yes, please continue to send me your referrals!

Signing off...